Ritesh* and Janvi* left India in 2015 to try to build a new life for their family in New Zealand. Knowing they would need some time to settle, the parents left behind their children who were two and one year old in the care of their grandparents.
Three years later, the couple finally felt financially stable so they arranged for their two children to move to New Zealand. However, the children couldn’t even remember their mum and dad, and couldn’t bond with them. It was heart breaking for the parents.
Ritesh attended the Incredible Years Parenting Course, hoping to get some tips on how to forge a bond with their children. The course lasted 14 weeks and the learning Ritesh took from it was invaluable.
He not only picked up practical parenting strategies, but was encouraged by the experiences of other parents on the course as well.
After every session, he excitedly went home to Janvi and passed on everything that he learned. Just two of the techniques Ritesh and Janvi found most helpful were praising their childrens behaviour they would like to see more of, and spending 10 minutes alone with each child each day.
These sound simple enough but practising them made such a huge impact to their relationship with them.
Now the two children are very happily settled in New Zealand. They feel loved and show affection to both parents. Ritesh and Janvi are so grateful for this new and beautiful beginning for their family.
Find more information about our Incredible Years programme.
*Names changed and stock image used to protect identities.
